My Journey to Fit after Fifty

Tracking ones progress by monitoring the weight scale requires faith and patience as sometime it goes in the wrong direction lol As I mentioned last week I always try to focus on the trend and trust the same plan in place. If the trend starts flat lining or going up then I would address the plan and make some changes. I could reduce calories even more or increase my activity level...or both😁 I hope you all are meeting your goals for the new year! Keep it going as this is about the time less committed people start falling off the fitness train💪

My Burrito Bowl! About 450 calories and packed with flavor😋😋😋

Burrito bowls for this weeks lunches.
•brown rice
•black beans
•chickpeas
•red peppers
•corn kernels
•avocado

Today’s lunch! Fully raw and delicious!!! 😋😋😋 @ Casco, Michigan

This chart misses 2015 which was the first year that I started my health journey and I was 187. I got my first Fitbit at Christmas 2015. It was run over by a car (long story) in early 2016 and I didn’t get another one until Christmas 2016. That’s why you see that straight line going up. I always blamed that weight gain on not having a Fitbit lol. During my 5 year journey I’ve taken baby steps. I started by eliminating processed foods and red meat. The next big change was going to low fat dairy products. The biggest change of all was when I went plant based and eliminated animal products from my diet. I’ve also incorporated daily walking goals and do resistance and cardio training regularly. The results were a 56lb weight loss.

Mason Jar Mexican Salad is on the menu for lunches this week!!! Mmmm😋 Ingredients include:
• Green Peppers
• Corn Kernels
• Grape Tomatoes
• Quinoa
• Black Beans
• Avocado
• Baby Spinach/ Kale mix @ Casco, Michigan

I think it’s time for a new endeavor in my life. I recently took a couple introductory sessions for Karate. I’ve decided to set a goal of having a black belt by the young age of 65😁 I believe setting goals is very important. It can provide a long term vision and short term motivation and help you to get the most out of life! 🥋🥋🥋

Last nights dinner was 100% raw. I do like to sauté my veggies but I always try to mix some uncooked veggies into my diet as well. I’ve read that the cooking process can decrease some of the nutritional value. I really don’t see any negatives and this salad was delicious!!!😋😋😋

Mmmm😋 My lunches are going to be so good this week. Trying out this Fruity Kale Salad. The dressing is very simple...Lime juice, maple syrup and a tiny bit of salt. The salad consist of broccoli, cucumbers, blueberries, edamame, pecans and kale 🥬 So good!!!
@ Casco, Michigan

Changing things up this week from Mason jar salads. I went with a veggie bake for my lunches. I added some broccoli, sweet potatoes, tofu, and chickpeas to a baking sheet. Coated them with a little oil and a lot of spices. Baked for 25 minutes. While they were baking I prepared a Miso based dressing and gathered some sunflower seeds. After 25 minutes I removed from the oven and tossed the sunflowers seeds onto the top and then baked for another 10 minutes. I divided the food into 4 containers and adding the dressing on top😋😋😋 @ Casco, Michigan

Tommy’s Superfoods frozen vegetables have been a recent kick for me. This mix has Cauliflower, Green beans and Yellow peppers! I added some marinated Tempeh and Lentil Sprouts into the mixture😋

This is what my mason jar salads will look like when not in the jar this week😋 This is a plant based Greek Salad🥗
The dressing consisted of balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard and a tiny bit of olive oil. That goes in the jar first. Then I added pasta, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, olives, beans and spinach...in that order. I’m not counting calories these day but I’d speculate 400-450😋

Just in case you need a reminder... Eating vegetables every day is important for health. They provide essential vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients, such as antioxidants and fiber. Research consistently shows that people who eat the most vegetables have the lowest risk of many diseases, including cancer and heart disease. Enough said😁

“In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson
No matter if its be a walk in your yard, a visit to a local park, or a cross country trip, just getting into nature will lift your spirits!

Did you eat your veggies today! Marinated and pan fried tempeh, mushrooms, peppers, green onions, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, lentil sprouts, red cabbage and carrots. Used the left over marinade for the dressing😋

Trying something a little different this week in my prepped lunches. It’s called the Peanut Crunch Salad. The dressing consist of natural PB, tamarind, red wine vinegar, and lemon juice. You can scroll through the rest of the images to see all the ingredients in the order that they go in the jar. It’s best to put the firmer veggies closer to the dressing as the jars will be in the fridge for 4 days and you don’t want things getting soggy👍😋 The recipe called for salted peanuts on top but I replaced with some roasted and sliced almonds.😋 Happy Monday!!! @ Casco, Michigan

A big bowl of deliciousness today for my lunch and post workout meal😋 I hope you all have a lovely weekend!

What’s in the lunch box this week? My go to is the Mason Jar Salad of course😋 Ingredients starting with what goes in the jar first....
• Healthy Choice Green Goddess Dressing - 3 tbsp
• Grape Tomatoes - 1/2 cup
• Yellow Peppers - 1/2 cup
• Cucumbers - 1/2 cup
• Lentil Sprouts - 1/2 cup
• Black Beans - 1/2 cup
• Baby Spinach - jam in as much as I can to fill the jar.

I rarely drink beer and I rarely eat bread anymore...but 25th wedding anniversary’s are also rare so I splurged a bit on our dinner. I did have a veggie stir fry for the main course and it was delicious.
It was our first time at a sit down restaurant in over 3 months so it felt good to get out😊 and yes I drink beer with an orange in it...which gained some extra vitamin C😅👍
@ Washington, Michigan

Finally had a chance to harvest some of my garden which went towards an awesome salad for lunch!!! Got some additional protein from the lentil sprouts💪🏻
@ Casco, Michigan

Five years ago I set forward a plan to change my life for the better. I was at a low point, 50 lbs overweight, a 30+ year smoker who could barely walk up 1 story of stairs without having to rest. The first action I took was the major step of quitting smoking and then I slowly started improving my diet and adding exercise into my life. So here I am 5 years later, 55 lbs lighter, eating a plant based diet and hiking to the top of South Dakota’s highest peak at 7,242 ft. Next up...a 10k peak💪🏻 One of my motivations for this change was to give myself the best chance to be around for my children. I wanted to be a father for as long as possible. Happy Fathers Day to all you fathers out there.
journey

I’m new at this sprout thing so I made way too many...like 5 mason jars full haha Good thing I like them because I’m putting them on everything now😋😋😋

"The way to develop self-confidence is to do the thing you fear and get a record of successful experiences behind you." --William Jennings Bryan